[DoA Inktober 2023] Written submissions: [DoA Inktober 2023] Vampire

Two days after Event Horizon found a good spot between the steep sides of two underwater cliffs to call their home, they were woken from their rest by a dark red glow. Considering it was pitch black down here, except for the glowing plants and bacteria in that brine pool they were living near, red glowing things usually meant nothing good. The glowing creature also seemed to be swimming straight at the brine pool, as if to plunge headfirst in it. The glowing light was close enough to Horizon that they could see the red glow was coming from three places on the creature’s body- one big line on the creature’s back, and two smaller lines on either side of the body.

As the creature got closer, Horizon’s first thought was, that’s a fellow Swamp Skimmer! There was no way they could mistake the body plan of their own species. But their second thought was, that’s a vampiric Swamp Skimmer. No other dragon would be glowing red from every scale and every eye if it wasn’t infected with vampirism. But on the other flipper… It was a fellow Swamp Skimmer. And after weeks of not seeing another dragon, Horizon would almost take the company of that vampire, even if they had no idea how volatile the other dragon would be.

Horizon waited far too long, swirls of colour flickering on their scales unconsciously, and the Swamp Skimmer seemed to notice them, and turned to swim towards them. As Horizon witnessed the dragon swim over, frozen to the spot, they heard the other dragon asking them if they had food.

They were an adult, yes, but barely fully grown nonetheless. So hearing the big Swamp Skimmer in front of them- who was also a vampire- open his jaws and ask in what was clearly a subadult’s voice startled them. And they thought, why not help him, there’s nothing else to lose.

So they swam out of their cave that they were living in, saw the vampire’s eyes light up (quite literally, they glowed brighter), and quickly swam to the edge of the brine pool and gestured to a small crab. With the way that the other Swamp Skimmer chomped down on the food, he probably hasn’t eaten in a week. And maybe, just maybe, Horizon thought, it wouldn’t be so bad if they were to live with another dragon for the foreseeable future.